Chapter 1 - Lost in Typing

1-Adam, Chapter One

Adam was there — on top of him, hitting him. He broke his glasses.

Everyone gathered around, asking: "What happened? What's wrong? Adam?! Standing up for himself?"

There were laughs, shouts, and screams.

Adam's childhood wasn't the greatest. He ended up in the Kuwait three years old after the Syrian Revolution and moved around a lot — going to seven different schools and suffering from racism.

He grew up as the middle child, with a tough father, a depressed older brother, a much younger sister Layla whom he adored, and his mom, Jasmine.

He finally settled at Arrow High School, though he still couldn't stop himself from getting into yet another fight — about his ethnicity, obviously.

Freshman year, Adam met his huge friend group — more like a cult or a family, call it whatever you want. They always had each other's backs. Yet they also bullied everyone else, they saw it as part of their sense of humor. They even bullied Adam for liking a girl in his class, Bibi.

Luckily, he was blessed with friends who would go around the school shouting at whoever mockingly called him "Syrian." Like Karim. And when he was too much of a coward to stand up to someone who called his little sister a bitch in 8th grade, Qasem would say, "I'll fight him for you if you want."

Sophomore year, a huge fight happened. Adam and Karim got expelled, but they still chose to spam and mock a freshman girl's account — Jade. But Jade didn't find it funny, so she fired back. They despised her, bullied her even more, and most of them didn't even know why they were mocking that innocent freshman — they just went along because their friends did. Especially Adam.

Adam, after his expulsion, was at his lowest, but his friends didn't know it, he never showed it. His family kept blaming him and couldn't stand him anymore — he had made them proud by getting into one of the best schools in Kuwait, and now he had thrown it all away.

Someone — or let's say some girl — had texted him before. He acted unbothered and forgot about it. But during one of his depressive episodes, he noticed a familiar notification. Something shifted inside him — he was bored, vulnerable.

2-Dam?

Her name was Jasmine — a Palestinian who grew up in Kuwait and now studied in Saudi Arabia, after her dad found a better job there. She was a year older than him.

She clung this time, questioning why he wasn't interested in talking to her, asking why his tone was so dry — confused and wondering, "If you're so bothered, just block me already."

But he thought ,''what the hell does she want from me"

So he replied out of curiosity, and that's how the question game started.

It felt like a one-sided conversation.

She kept trying to ask him things — his age, what he was doing — but he stayed distant and dry.

He didn't even answer when she asked, "Where are you from?"

Just a few days earlier, his friends had been telling a story about fake accounts: how a guy had texted another guy as a girl, trying to flirt, and he fell for it.

That stuck with him, making him even colder.

But after a few days, she frowned and told him, "I feel like I'm a detective, and I'm probably annoying you."

What surprised her was that this time, his reply was gentle,

"No, it's fine — just bring up something more interesting."

Then he started asking her questions back and picked up on the energy.

Jasmine told her mom about him and started calling him "Dam" — even though the name wasn't exactly the most masculine or the coolest, and they hadn't been talking for very long. Still, it stirred something unfamiliar in him, almost felt special.

"Yeah, by the way... where are you from?" she asked, knowing that this time he had to answer — there was nowhere left to run.

"Syria," he replied. Adam had always been scared to reveal where he was from — it always got him in trouble. But this time, there was no way to dodge it anymore.

She actually sounded surprisingly excited when she heard that.

He asked, with a sudden surge of euphoria, "Why do you sound so happy about that?"

But that feeling quickly faded when she told him her ex's mom was Syrian and that she really loved her. He had a strange feeling bubbled up inside him hearing about her ex. thought, "Why am I even feeling this way? It's not my concern."

Yet he felt something special — someone who didn't judge him, gave him a nickname, and actually cared enough to ask about him. He was content that she loved people like him.

Then she asked if he'd ever had any past relationships.

He replied, "I've never been in one," and started rambling about how his family isn't okay with it — and that he actually agrees with them, saying he'd never gone out with any girl.

Then he asked what her family thought about it too.

She answered, "I have three brothers, what do you think?"

He followed up, asking about their ages to lighten the mood, she answered — then shifted the subject back to Syria, teasing him to say something in Syrian.

His response was, "I don't like to, plus I barely know any."

But she kept nagging for a voice message, his reaction was, "Just imagine me talking, that's enough.

"She replied with the excuse that she didn't even know what he looked like.

He was surprised and reminded her how she'd liked his stories twice.

She denied it, but he pulled out proof — yet she kept playing dumb and kept nagging. Meanwhile, he stubbornly refused, kept trying to change the subject, and jokingly blamed her for distracting him from studying.

Finally, he gave in. And for the funny part, she asked him to sing the intro of a very famous Syrian series.

They kept talking after that, and bit by bit , he actually started to care — even double texted when she was late to reply. He loosened up and genuinely enjoyed talking to her, feeling at ease enough to share how his day or exam went.

From the classic stereotype of a pretty good-looking athlete, it surprised Jasmine when she realized he didn't really have a "type" when it came to women — and even more so when she noticed his unexpectedly low self-esteem.

For now, all he really knew about her appearance was that she was quite slim and a bit too careful when talking about her weight — almost as if she was afraid he might call her overweight, even though she clearly wasn't. Despite the fact that he wasn't usually the type to joke around with everyone, once he got comfortable with someone, his whole attitude shifted to teasing and sarcasm. He'd even sarcastically call her "fat," not fully realizing how much it could actually affect her.

One day, they were sharing random stories from their lives, and he mentioned getting expelled. There had been a fight, but as he put it, "my peaceful soul had nothing to do with it — they were the ones who started it. My friends overheard people talking about me and stepped in to do what they had to do. But in the end, I got framed for things I didn't even do. Plus, even if I'd had the chance to stay at that school, I wouldn't have, because I knew I might just end up getting into another fight."

He didn't feel much guilt, even though his dad had left town just a few hours before the fight, warning him not to do anything foolish while he was gone. Jas gave him a harsh lecture about it, saying it was irresponsible. But he said he'd changed a lot of schools — this one wasn't special.

And when Jasmine called him brainless and a troublemaker, he replied that it wasn't always his fault. Sometimes the school staff weren't professional, and his brother got into a lot of mess too.

He also blamed his friends for getting into too much drama, as if he had nothing to do with it.

After all that, they kept talking and didn't even notice it was already 2 a.m.

The next day, Adam didn't wake up on time, but Jas texted to check on him and told him to set an alarm next time.

He said even the alarm hadn't been able to wake him up lately.

Jas teased, "Well, who's to blame?" — clearly meaning it was his fault.

But he joked back, "Of course the alarm. Or you. I'm boycotting you — you're distracting me from studying and sleeping."

Jas laughed but took the joke a little seriously and started being dry with him. Even when he tried to text her later, all she replied was, "Go study." But she couldn't help herself but to check on how he did on his exam.

3- The Barber

The conversations kept going. Every time Jasmine cooked or baked, she'd send him a picture. One time, his mom's Syrian friends were over, so he couldn't leave his room to eat. They ended up talking about how his mom's friends always offered him the option of marrying their daughters someday. Jas made fun of him saying that even his female classmates couldn't even stand him. suggesting indirectly that he's obviously fibbing.

That made him annoyed and mad because she didn't believe him and called him cocky. Jas replied coldly and left it at that. But then he confounded her by texting, "I was kidding, how did you believe that?" He followed it with big laughs and asked for an Oscar.

She reacted, "Not funny — it's only fine when I make fun of you. What kind of 'prank' is that anyway"

Even though whatever that was called might've sounded silly to anyone else. it made Jas smile and feel like she'd really changed something in him — a small but real step forward.

He laughed too, cared about how she felt, and even asked how he could make it up to her. They got really close in a short time, even catching themselves saying the same words at the same time now and then.

Adam thought about getting a new haircut, she was the first to ask. He tried to convince her that a buzz cut wouldn't look that bad. She asked to see how his current hair looked, but he teased, "If you see it right now, you'll block me."

Still, he sent her a video of his current look. She made fun of his little patchy facial hair and ended up even more convinced that he shouldn't do it.

 He joked back, "Your opinion is rejected."

But Jasmine was the kind of person who could take things to heart and get upset easily. He noticed right away and quickly added, "Okay, okay — I'm not buzzing it.

"She told him to do it anyway if he really thought it would look good.

Adam felt bad , so he told her that he wasn't going to anyway — and now she felt terrible for making him feel bad and tried to convince him to do it. In the end, he just said he'd give it some thought later.

Jasmine changed the subject and asked, "How many kids do you want to have?"

"Four or five... eight if I had enough cash," he replied.

She laughed and said, "two for max — and you're probably not even good with kids, I guess."

He said, "Says who? If he's a respectful young gentleman, I'll be nice. But if he starts crying or telling bad jokes, I'll throw him out the window."

Of course, Jas thought to herself that Adam was obviously like any other male who sees women as baby machines and housemaids. And when she asked him about his type,

he said, "Skinny — that's the most important thing, cause I'm fatphobic. Colored eyes, knows how to cook, obviously. Can take a joke and isn't too sensitive. To be honest — that's such a stupid question."

Jas took it personally but still laughed, because she knew he was being sarcastic as usual.

At that time, it was exam season for Adam. Jas used to help him study, trying to keep him focused. But Adam often got annoyed because to him, Jas's pep talks sounded just like everyone else's. Still, sometimes he'd end up asking for her help anyway.

Then the day came.

He sent her a picture, warning her in advance how bad it looked and telling her to just forget about it. But of course, Jas insisted.

"I mean, the barber did the best he could," she teased, mocking him.

"I don't even know how you look like, you have no right to talk," he replied sharply.

She changed her mind and said, "You know what, I might rate it an 8/10. The barber's good, I like him."

"You like the barber?" he asked sarcastically.

"Yeah, is he married?" she replied, playing along.

"No, do you want his account?" he said.

"Yes," she laughed.

"Of course not," he refused completely, claiming his barber didn't even have an account.

 Jas didn't believe him, but didn't care enough to argue.

Then suddenly she asked, "Why don't you speak Syrian?"

"I do — in front of my family only. I just got used to it. If I speak it in front of other people, it just feels wrong," he answered.

Jas sensed it wasn't the full truth and tried to push him to say it out loud, but all he added was, "Imagine speaking Syrian in Kuwait."

"??" she replied, basically saying, Yeah? And what's wrong with that?

But of course, Adam didn't want to sound pathetic, so he said, "Don't act stupid, you know what I mean," hinting at the racism.

Jas got mad, telling him he should be proud and not care what a bunch of ignorant uneducated people might say.

Adam apologized, asking her to chill down, because he knew she wouldn't get it.

Next day, Jasmine posted a picture of herself: tanned skin, oval face, dark brown hair with a flower tucked in it, and her brown doe eyes.

He replied to the story: "Is that you?"

Jas got annoyed — she thought it was the stupidest question ever — so she replied with, "Go sleep."

But then, wanting to keep the conversation going, she went back to reply to the earlier messages.

"You're always the problem," she teased."

You have to teach me how not to be," he said.

"Do I have to?"

"As you like — but you can't be mad at me if you don't." he replied.

"Well, to care more about who you love, smile more, care less about what people think of you," she told him.

"So... not care about what you say at all? Noted. Though honestly, I do do all that," he replied.

She started arguing, saying that if he really cared, he would at least study seriously for his parents' sake — since he loved them. Then, she ended the convo with the driest thing ever.

He replied, "okayy, sorry. Idk for what, but I told you I AM studying."

4- Tariq

Their first "I love you" wasn't even that serious. He was just ordering food and said, "I'll order for you too." Out of excitement, she blurted out, "I LOVE YOUUU."

He replied with a tender "love you too," then teasingly added, "A salad, so you don't get fat."

Later they kept talking for another couple weeks,

 She asked, "Did you study?"

"I AM studying, fuck off!" he replied jokingly. He was just done with how many times people asked him that every day.

Jas found that extremely rude and disrespectful, so she left him on read.

He double-texted, "Sorry, are you mad?"

"Yes, I am," she replied.

"Can I know why?" he asked.

"Do you really want me to fuck off?" she responded.

Adam didn't understand what she meant — he actually forgot about his message. When he asked her to explain, she didn't reply for a couple of hours.

He kept expecting her to text back. He waited. Nothing.

He reread their last messages, then finally texted her again.

"Do you mean this message?" (quoting himself).

She replied, "Nth, go study."

Jas was still mad—not only at how Idiotic the whole situation was, but also at how long it took him to realize just how impolite his words had been to her.

Finally, Adam got fed up and said, "Fine, kiss my ass. It's my fault for even caring."

Jas retorted, "So now you're swearing? Wow, so manly of you."

He started laughing and said, "Sorry, but you're so provoking."

"Sorry doesn't work every time." Jas said

Adam replied, "What? you want flowers?"

She was still mad at how unserious he'd been in the situation.

"What about shutting the fuck up?" Jasmine snapped.

"Listen, I'm sorry, but every time I try to have a conversation with you, you shut me down with 'go study.'" Adam elaborated.

Well, after all that got sorted out, a notification popped up on Jasmine's phone saying her ex had just sent her a follow request.

She was so confused — even though they'd ended things on good terms, she couldn't help but wonder what made him decide to do that now.

Jas texted Adam with a screenshot of the notification: "That's my ex. What should I do?"

Adam replied sarcastically: "Well, he's hot. I'll take him if you don't want him."

Chuckling, Jas said: "So, should I accept it or leave him for you?"

Adam said: "I'll take him — unless you want him more than I do."

Then he added, "Why did you break up? Did he cheat or something?"

Jas replied: "No, he was perfect actually, but we needed to focus on our studies and he got into uni."

Adam said: "So you quit having relationships?"

Jas responded, "Nah, but he was my first boyfriend and it was fun."

Then she gasped , "Omg, he texted!"

Adam replied: "Screenshot, you got me excited."

Jas laughed because he kind of sounded like her homegirls and said: "Dream about it."

Adam taunted: "Then why are you telling me? Looks like you two got back together and fell in love again."

An hour later, Jas replied: "A small fight happened but we caught up and decided to stay friends. I even said hi to his mom."

Adam said snarkily: "Ohh, that's the one with the Syrian mom. What a romantic story."

Jasmine sent a screenshot — proof that things with her ex, Tariq, were heading for a fresh start and that he'd probably bring her flowers as a peace offering. Then she added enthusiastically: "Well, at least I might receive a flower bouquet in a couple of days."

But what Adam actually focused on was the message Jas had scribbled over. The scribbling was almost pointless — the sentence was as clear as day: "Listen, I don't mean to hurt your feelings but I think I like someone else." That's what Jasmine had texted her ex.

"Did she mean me, maybe?" Adam wondered. "Come on, she has to be kidding — it's so obvious she wanted me to see it. Or maybe I'm just being delusional. Should I ask her about it... or not?" In the end, he just texted her: "Trying to make me jealous?"

But Jas thought he meant jealous of the flowers she was about to get, and started ribbing him about that instead.

Adam got dry — like really dry — until Jas finally asked if something was wrong, or if he was mad at her.

He denied it at first, then admitted, "A little, but it's okay."

But she wouldn't drop it; she kept asking, refusing to take that as an answer.

So he said, "Just kidding, there's nothing wrong."

That didn't fool her either. She could tell something was off. Eventually, she gave up asking, but as soon as she did,

he said, "You know what it is, but you want me to say it. It's not that big of a deal anyway."

Jas got annoyed — she had a feeling it had something to do with Tariq, but she wasn't sure what exactly.

"If I knew, I wouldn't be asking," she said, and asked if she'd done something wrong.

Adam laughed when he saw how serious she was getting and tried to brush it off, saying he was just messing around.

But she didn't buy it and stayed mad.

Finally, he blurted it out: "You're trying to make me jealous with your ex."

Then, embarrassed, he tried to change the subject and casually asked about her day.

She got even madder and said, "Oh, so you're just gonna act like nothing happened?"

"Why, what happened?" he replied, still pretending nothing was wrong.

Jasmine burst out, "First, you start acting weird. Then you tell me it's a joke. THEN you say I'm trying to 'make you jealous' by talking about my ex? You need to understand, I literally skipped so many other options for you, and you're not helping at all. And when I try to understand where you're coming from, you just act like none of this ever happened. Stop this, Adam."

Adam glanced, shocked and not really knowing what to say at first. But then he replied with harsh, heavy texts:

"You should've got it from the first time we talked. Relationships aren't my thing, It's just a waste of time. We're not gonna end up married, and if you keep getting into fruitless relationships, you'll never get married at all.

The whole idea is just stupid; it messes with your feelings and your brain.

For example, you could block me right now and go to one of your 'other options' and tell them the same thing.

And don't take this as me insulting you — you're a really nice girl with a wonderful personality. It's such a waste to spend it on guys who'd settle for any girl who shows them the slightest attention.

I mean, 99% of the guys you're talking to just want to get other things from you."

Jasmine took a moment to process his reaction. Deep down, she had half-expected him to get serious and reject her so bluntly yet it still stung, but there was no time to waste sulking. She needed to save her ego somehow.

"do you know when the Oscars start?" she asked him ironically.

Adam was surprised by her reaction. He didn't know what to expect, but he definitely didn't see that coming. He felt a bit stupid, but couldn't quite believe Jasmine would risk someone's feelings just for a joke. Still, he laughed and asked, "Why?" knowing exactly where she was going with it.

"CAUSE I FREAKING WON!" she said, wanting him to see how she'd gotten her comeback, mocking him — and of course, got her pride back.

Two days later, Jasmine opened the chat to update her friend about what had happened — but was shocked to see that Adam had deleted his long, harsh texts. She immediately asked him why, but all he said was, "Idk, I forgot."

She knew he definitely wasn't going to tell her the real reason. "Why?" she wondered. "Did he change his mind? Did he feel like he'd been too dramatic?"

A couple of days later, they made a deal to never lie to each other about anything. Jasmine wasn't too affected by it, but Adam's reaction showed how it meant something to him when he said, "But the deal starts now, don't bring up the past." 

5- Rejection Flags

The next day, he asked her what she had for dinner. She said, "Nothing."

When he questioned why, she blamed him for making her feel overweight. He mocked her, saying,

"You developed a psychological complex? Don't worry, you'll fade in no time, considering how skinny you are. How could you even believe you're fat? You never believed me before, so why suddenly now? Seriously?"

Jas was pissed at how casually and coldly he said that, even if his point was to make her feel better.

Then he went on, "You reminded me of this girl I used to know—her name was Bibi. Every time I saw her, I'd tell her she was getting chubby. Later, she actually developed body image issues and stopped eating much."

"What an asshole. What a piece of shit he is. How can anyone be so confident saying that out loud? How can anyone think it's okay to say such things? " Jas wondered in frustration.

He said it all so coldly, then added, "But you really are skinny. And anyway, it was for her own good—she really was chubby back then."

''No way he just said that! There's no way this person is that tone-deaf," she kept thinking.

He also said that the girl used to say the same thing about herself, and she did lose a bit of weight — but that was back when they were still friends. Even then, she had asked him to stop joking about her weight, so he did. They eventually stopped being friends because, according to him, her girlfriends were annoying.

Jasmine thought it was possible he found them annoying because he might have dated her — and, of course, her friends had noticed his red flags and told Bibi to cut him off.

"You were dating?" Jasmine asked.

"Of course not," he snapped.

"Then why did you hate her friends?"

He brushed it off with a petty reply, saying they were full of themselves and acted like they were the main characters. But she still wasn't convinced, so she pressed,

"So you had a crush on her?"

"Yeah, a little," he admitted.

Jasmine added, "And she seemed to like you back, so you thought you should start dating, but then her friends ruined it?"

He neither denied nor confirmed it.

"Maybe... but we were just friends. Either way, she's the most disgusting girl now."

Jas scoffed, "Oh yeah, sure." and tried to forget about it.

6- Moral Shift

A few days later, Jasmine asked Adam about the cute guy standing next to him in his profile picture. It turned out to be his older cousin, so she asked for his account.

He jokingly refused, saying he wanted him all to himself.

 She replied with a hint of playful jealousy, telling him to go hang out with Bibi and keep the cute cousin for her.

But then he said, "I don't like her anymore; there's a new girl."

Jasmine read the message and felt mixed emotions. She felt like a hypocrite because she didn't like the way he talked about women or body-shamed them, yet she couldn't help feeling jealous and asking more about this 'new girl.'

His answers were vague, so she lost hope and went back to ask about his cousin again, saying, "You can skip all this and just send me his account, you know."

He replied ironically, "I don't want to skip it then."

She told him to go check on his new girl and leave her alone, but he shocked her by texting, "You're the new girl."

She called him a liar after feeling a flutter in her stomach, but he was disappointed by her response and replied curtly.

He texted her the next morning, but she wasn't exactly cheerful.

"He can't just act like yesterday was casual," she thought, after finally managing to get some sleep the night before, she'd been overthinking everything that had happened.

He noticed her dull replies and asked what was wrong, as if he didn't already know.

"You broke our deal," she answered, trying to see if he had really been lying last night.

He said, "Do you want the truth? I'm so used to lying that sometimes I lie without noticing, and when I look back, I realize it was a lie. I don't know whether to stop and tell you it's all lies or just keep going."

But that wasn't a clear answer to her. "Did he lie about something else and think I was talking about that, instead of what happened last night?" she wondered. Keeping her dull tone, he asked again, but of course she refused to say. So he started listing possibilities, waiting to see which one was right.

"Okay, lying is sorted. Is it about my cousin's account?" he asked first.

"Of course not," she replied, almost mocking the question.

"Thank God. Then is it about Bibi or the other new girl?"

"Maybe," she replied, doing her best not to make it obvious.

"Forget about Bibi, and the new girl is you."

"Haha, not funny," she said, flabbergasted.

"No, I swear I'm being serious."

"So that's what you meant when you got mad about Tariq?" she asked casually, pretending she hadn't just screamed inside from all the surprise and emotion piling up.

"Yes," he admitted.

"Ok, I like you back," she said, acting completely unbothered by the news.

"So... what now?" Adam asked, confused; it was the first time he'd been in a situation like this. "But you were so obvious from the start," he added.

She denied it, then teased him for how he'd refused to show his feelings at first.

He asked if she usually visited Kuwait, since she grew up there, and whether her family was planning to come again next summer — trying to see if there was any chance they could meet.

She wasn't sure yet, but mostly replied, "Yeah, I guess, because my family and I visit every year."

But she couldn't help thinking about Bibi, so she asked him one last time — just to be sure.

"How many times do I have to tell you there was nothing? I swear," he said.

Then she asked, "Then what are we?"

He got flustered and said, "I don't know, you tell me. You're the one with experience, you should know."

Jas got so furious and blamed herself for even thinking about it.

"It was just one relationship, and he knew what to say" she said.

Adam replied sarcastically, "Give me his account he might help me learn some stuff."

She was done with him and texted, "Gn," then threw her phone away to sleep.

But she couldn't help but open a notification that said, "No, you're not sleeping. Tell me what you want me to say."

She got even more furious and said, "You know what? Forget everything. I want nothing to do with you."

"No, I'm not. I just don't know what to say. Girlfriend and boyfriend?" he replied trying to make things right.

Even though she thought to herself, "What more does he want? Me to pay for his nails?"

But luckily, Adam made it through.

Even though Adam thought Jasmine could be too much sometimes — always sensitive and a bit of a handful — he still couldn't stop himself from trying to win her back every single time.

Even if it meant pulling out his embarrassing baby pics.

They were talking daily, sharing every detail of their days. Jasmine was really a jealous type of girl; even when Adam's friends first mentioned Jade, she basically started an investigation into every girl he'd ever known. Whereas Adam was patient.

Once, Jasmine asked Adam to prove he loved her.

Jasmine received a picture, a painting his little sister had made for their mom — and since his mom and Jasmine shared the same name, the drawing already had Jasmine's name on it. Jas found it so cute.

Yet despite all this, she would still ask Adam to do impossible things to prove his love to her, get overly sensitive about the smallest things, and always expected him to apologize — even when she was clearly in the wrong (which was most of the time).

Adam started to reconsider everything he'd done, feeling a bit of regret, because this wasn't what he wanted. He felt maybe it needed to end.

But somehow, every time Jasmine acted annoyingly, she could save herself: either by convincing him into believing he was the one neglecting her, or by apologizing at the last minute.

Jasmine couldn't help but follow Jade's account. It wasn't really jealousy; she just thought Adam was overreacting and wanted to see if Jade was actually cool.

She even replied to one of Jade's stories. Jade answered back, then asked, "Do I know you?"

Jasmine sent the chat to Adam, asking him what to reply. But Adam got anxious and stressed out immediately:

"Why are you talking to her?"

"What story did you reply to?"

"What exactly did you say? Tell me in detail."

Jasmine felt odd about his reaction. "That's literally all. So what do you think I should say?"

Adam's answer shocked her: "Idk, anything — just don't mention me."

Jas was mad, but hid it behind mockery: "Why are you terrified? What's the worst that could happen? I might say I'm your friend or something."

She expected him to correct her sentence and reassure her,

but instead he said: "Or you might not. I told you she's a rumor-monger."

Jasmine got even angrier, but still acted chill: "And?"

"Don't you feel it's weird? She'll realize we gossiped about her."

Jasmine still sensed something was off, but replied: "Fine, I won't reply. Friends are supposed to stand up for each other, right?"

And so audaciously, Adam just said: "Thanks."

She couldn't hold it anymore and snapped: "Friend? Well maybe I did reply to her."

He got mad immediately: "No, that was a trap! I didn't mean it that way! Wtf did you do?"

"Why so scared?" she shot back, acting like she wasn't the one who got scared by his reaction. Then added: "Just kidding, of course I didn't."

"I sensed you're lying," he replied. "I told you not to, but when you told me you did. I felt like we had no trust."

But she kept nagging: "But for real, what's the worst that could happen?"

"Why risk it? She could tell people Adam has a girlfriend, for example." he replied.

And for the first time, she had every right to be truly incensed: "And what's wrong with that? If you're too embarrassed to tell anyone about me, why are you even texting me?"

"You won't get it. My friends, my family... they'd eat me alive," Adam replied.

"They didn't kill you when it came to Bibi, did they?" she snapped.

"First of all, I didn't date her. Second, they still mock me about it," he replied.

Jasmine didn't know how to react or what to do. She already hadn't been the best girlfriend these last few days, but this time she had every right to snap. However, chose to stay calm and not dig deeper — at least for now.

After a few days, the subject came up again when he said,

"Why are you flipping out all of a sudden? You're imagining things."

"Am I now?" she said.

"Okay, so what, you want me to post a story of us or something?" Adam said sarcastically.

"All I'm asking is for you not to be scared to text me when your friends are around." Jasmine replied seriously.

"Okay, so is there still something you don't like, or is that it?" He asked, sounding tired of it all. "My friends are different from yours, my environment is different from yours. You won't understand," he added

Jas felt guilty and went to sleep after saying she understood. Before sleeping, she checked if he was still mad at her. he said its totally fine and dropped it

A week later, Jasmine told Adam about her strict family on her dad's side — how they believed women her age should stop studying, get married, and become housewives.

Adam said, "I swear to god, if I had the cash, I'd get married right now. But my family won't let me because I'm broke — and pretty irresponsible, too."

"It's scary," Jasmine said. "All the commitments... and the fear of not choosing the right father for your children."

"Marriage is different," he reassured her. "You get to know his family, his friends... ask around to 

see his true colors."

Trying to lighten the mood, she teased, "You couldn't even handle three straight hours of studying — and you think you'd handle a lifelong relationship with five kids?"

"Irrelevant. Studying isn't everything. I could find a job anywhere, even without a degree," Adam replied.

"Not a job that could offer a decent life for a family of seven," she quipped.

"Well, I do work every summer at my uncle's shop to save up for marriage, but he doesn't give me enough cash for the hours I work," Adam complained.

"Then marry his daughter, so he'd have to give you more money to provide her a healthy home," she mocked.

"He won't approve , and I wouldn't either — what the hell, marrying my cousin?"

"So your kids can grow up speaking Syrian," she teased again.

"Well, I'll definitely marry a Syrian, no worries," Adam laughed.

"My friend is Syrian — wanna hook you two up?" she replied dryly.

"Nah, Jasmine is enough for me," he said after noticing her becoming resentful.

"And who's teaching your kids to speak their original dialect?" she asked, feeling better about his response.

"I'll relearn it, it's fine — and you can teach them whichever dialect you prefer," he replied.

7- Jasmitment 

Summer came, and she was in Kuwait.

On a doomed night, Jasmine's father's family were invited over for dinner. She greeted them quickly, her smile tight, then slipped away into the kitchen — hoping for a few quiet moments to breathe.

But her cousin, a jobless man in his late twenties, followed behind her. He was puffed up by his mother's words: that every woman would dream of a man like him, and that Jasmine, still underage, would be perfect for him

He stepped closer, cornering her against the counter.

"Why are you so nervous?" he sneered. "Relax. I'm gonna marry you whether you like it or not."

Her pulse hammered in her ears, disgust burning in her eyes.

Then he reached out to touch her — but she shoved him away, heart pounding, before running off, tears spilling down her face. She locked herself in her room, chest heaving, refusing to tell anyone what had happened.

They barely visited Kuwait anyway, staying only a few weeks each year. And she didn't want her dad or brothers to cause a big scene.

Jasmine told Adam about it when he noticed her strange moodiness and anxiety over the past few days. She was also, for some reason, unusually worried about his little sister.

Adam got angry and tried to convince her to at least tell her family if she wanted to keep it private. But she explained that since they were only staying for a short time, her aunt would make a scene and turn everyone against her anyway.

Then Adam suggested at least reporting him to the police, and asked her if it was okay for him to step in.

Jasmine just replied, "As if you could actually do anything," so he backed off, dreading she might actually say yes — because he really wouldn't know what to do or what to say to his own family.

Still, he kept trying to convince her that she needed to tell someone in her family.

Also warned her that it could happen again every year.

But Jasmine got mad and said, "I'm not asking you to do anything, I just needed someone to talk to."

Adam realized he was getting too involved in her family's business, so he apologized and let it go.

At first, they just joked about having children — and how Jasmine only wanted cats while Adam was ailurophobe. But Adam started to take it more seriously when she said she thought adopting would be a better idea —

"You'd have the option to choose the gender, and there are so many kids in the world who deserve parents' care and affection but don't receive it."

He replied, "Those kids could find affection from people who can't have children of their own."

But she added that it was scary to have "a new creature" growing inside her, plus she'd get fat — and why wait nine months when you could just "get one in no time"?

Adam tried to reason with her that she'd look even prettier, and that he didn't mind waiting nine months to have a baby who might look like either of them — or both.

She teased him, "Or just, no kids and more cats?"

But he still insisted, telling her how beautiful the journey of motherhood could be,

She said, "What if my kids turned out to be immoral and ended up helping ruin society?"

"If they were raised well from the start, they wouldn't get lost — just like how you were raised, how I was raised. That's how life goes." he said, trying to calm her down.

Jasmine was surprised by how much he actually seemed to want to be a father one day. She told him he was definitely mentally ready for it — but in real life, obviously, it's not that easy.

He started throwing out random, funny jokes about how he could handle everything — even financially — so easily. She then asked him what his dream job was, but he didn't have one. Still, he insisted he wasn't going to wait beyond 22 to get married, and wouldn't mind working 12+ hours a day to make it happen.

After a couple of days, Jasmine was making something for dessert. "Can I have some?" he asked jokingly.

"No, I'm afraid you'll get overweight," she teased, throwing back what he used to say to make him feel bad.

"What about you? No way you get to eat!" he shot back, messing around with her.

But she took it personally, got mad, and snapped, "It's not like I was planning to eat any in the first place."

Adam immediately felt horrible. He started begging her to eat something, or at least taste the dessert she was making. "It won't hurt," he told her, "and you'll burn it off in your sleep."

But she shut down the topic and instead asked what he was going to wear that day.

Still, she noticed how careful he'd become — apologizing for everything, even when she wasn't really mad, even when he hadn't done anything wrong. He just didn't want her to be upset with him, not even for a second.

"When are you traveling back to Saudi?" he asked.

"The end of this month, I guess," she replied.

"And when am I going to see you?" he asked.

"Didn't you say it's nonsensical and you never hang out with girls?"

"Yeah, but you're different," he said.

"Let's go somewhere you'd love to go," she replied — flattered, but still suspecting he was just sweet-talking.

"I don't know, you choose... anywhere nice. Or I'll think about it and tell you," he replied.

One random evening, they were joking about swapping each other's younger siblings. She told him how her little brother was so nosy and annoyingly protective.

He teased, "Yeah, I know those kinds of brothers—you have to stop him from getting married so he doesn't produce more."

"Yeah? So you're not one of those? I mean, if your sister wanted to talk to her male friends,

would you be okay with it?" she asked.

"And who said she's going to have male friends?" he snapped.

"Well, you do have female friends," Jas said.

"I don't. I only have you. You're the only one here with opposite-gender friends."

"So if she only had a boyfriend, it'd be fine?" she replied.

"Of course not. It's not fine with me either. If my brother found out, he'd kill me," he said, exaggerating but serious. Then he added, "But still, she's a girl. It's different."

She snapped back, "Yeah, so am I. How is it different? Plus, why are you still here if you're scared of people finding out?"

"Because I'm a man who has a sense of honor," he said sharply. Then he added, "I'm staying for you, and for me."

Basically, he was implying that men who let their household's women date or have male friends are shameless.

Jasmine blew up, furious, "So you think my family is shameless?"

He got embarrassed and bewilderment. He didn't mean to be rude, and he didn't want to lose her. He deleted the message and begged her to give him a chance to explain.

But she told him to shut up and said, "You've already said more than enough."

"Jas, I didn't mean it that way, please — just forget about it. I said nothing," he pleaded. Then he added, "If this was about my family or friends, I would've left you a long time ago. But it's not about them. I just have no one else to tell. Not because I'm embarrassed of you, but if anyone found out, it would cause a ton of problems. I'm risking seeing anyone I know while being with you because I love you. I can't help it."

Jasmine was touched and felt sorry for him. She sensed his genuine feelings — how he was risking his relationship with his family and social life just for her. Still, she told him, "Stop worrying so much about us, especially if you're not even okay with your sister growing up like me. I'm not worth all that. It's not like we're getting married or something — you said it yourself." She was referring to his old harsh texts that he had sent and then deleted.

He panicked and started calling her, trying to explain,

"Even if my family knew about us, I'd deal with it. I don't even like half of my friends, so it doesn't matter if it's for you. You helped me when I was vulnerable and weak, Jas. Talking to you helped me feel normal again. Without you, I'd still be blue. So if you're worried about me or my social life, don't be. Please forget everything I said in the past, and I'm really sorry if I did anything else."

Jasmine didn't know what to do. She felt so responsible for anything that might hurt him now. He was too attached. She didn't want to hurt him.

"I don't want this relationship to be just for fun. Even if we stopped talking and grew apart, I'll text you again," he said.

Jas saw the message and regretted every single word she had sent before. She started blaming herself, thinking that if only she hadn't been so clingy at first, none of this would have happened and no one would be hurt right now. It was never his fault for what's happening now.

"I could ruin his life; he doesn't deserve this," she wondered.

Then she asked him, "What would your friends genuinely do if they knew about us?"

"Mock me for it, we'd fight, and then the true friends would stay. You're irreplaceable, Jas. Let's just chat like before. Don't overthink it — that'll only make it worse," he replied.

"But what if they're right? They wish you the best... I don't deserve you," she asked, overwhelmed with guilt.

"They don't know you. You did nothing wrong. You raised my standards so high that even if we stopped talking, I'd never talk to another girl after you," Adam replied, hoping to calm her down.

Days went on, and Jasmine was still breaking down. Adam was always there, trying to make her feel better every minute.

She asked him, "When did you start liking me?"

"When I knew you liked me."

"When did you know that?" she asked, confused.

"I could tell — you were so obvious. But I was sure when you sent that screenshot of your chat with Tariq. It was clear you wanted me to read the 'scribbled' message. And that long message you sent me and then called a prank? I didn't really buy it," he said.

"Nah, you were probably hallucinating," she teased, then asked, "But why did you react like that about the message?"

"I don't know... I guess I wasn't ready. And if I'd said no bluntly, you'd just leave. So I tried to answer like a friend, giving advice. You know I'm not good at expressing feelings... you're the first girl in my life."

Normally, Jasmine should have felt flattered that she was his first love. But she couldn't stop worrying about the "first love" theory — that a man never truly gets over his first love. She never asked for that weight.

Every day, she tried everything she could to make him hate her. She even got mad every time he mentioned going out with her, because she couldn't risk him running into someone he knew and ruining his life.

But the more she tried to push him away, the more attached he became.

He loved her even more. She had become his top priority — his everything.

She kept apologizing for being mad or too sensitive all the time, but he kept relieving her: she could do whatever she wanted; it was too late for him to ever hate her anyway.

He kept saying he was sorry — that it was his fault she felt like this, and that he could be irritating sometimes, so she couldn't really be blamed.

"You're the main reason my day feels good now," he told her.

She asked him, "How could you still love me after everything I did?"

"How can I not? You're perfect, and you did nothing but great to me" he answered.

She couldn't believe it. She blamed herself for always pushing away everyone and everything she loved — or that loved her.

From the very first day, Jas had called him "Dam." it made him feel Significant. So he gave her a name too — "Jam" — not knowing it might only hurt them both even more later, making it even harder to let go.

"I think being friends would be easier," Jasmine blurted out one night, after Adam got upset because they wouldn't be able to see each other.

8- Mama Jasmine

"No, can you stop? You think I'm so terrified all the time when I'm talking to you, but it's the total opposite. I know you're worried something might happen to me, but it's gone too far — it's affecting you now," he said.

"Fine, but I'm not arguing about going out anywhere again," she replied.

Even after all that, Jasmine kept trying to convince Adam she wasn't the one for him — that it was almost impossible for them to stay together until marriage, and that his family might not approve of her in the first place.

He reassuringly hushed her and kept saying yes to everything she wanted — the twenty cats, the impossible dreams she made up just to push him away. He told her he could still marry her unless she found someone else — but that he could never choose anyone else over her.

He even added that maybe his family would end up loving her more than they loved him.

The more they talked, the more Jasmine saw how much how deeply he seemed to dislike himself — and she kept trying to lift him higher, even if it meant lowering herself.

"Jam, you're the smartest girl I've ever known. You're always right, your advice is the best thing ever, and everything you do is pure genius," he told her.

"Now you're just exaggerating," she said.

"Stop doing that — just accept it and thank me! I want you to know how amazing you really are," he replied.

Later,

"I'm not more important than your responsibilities and your future. Stop caring so much about me — focus on what actually matters."

"Right now, you're the most important. What's wrong? I'm sorry," he replied.

That day, Adam was trying to find a job that paid better than the one with his uncle. Jas tried to help him look, but all he really wanted was to talk to her — to forget about everything his family kept pressuring him about. He just needed a break. But Jasmine didn't want to distract him; she thought what they had wasn't worth risking his responsibilities.

Yet all he cared about now was her.

The next day, he went out to take care of his responsibilities, just like he'd promised.

 That night, he also dreamt about her.

"First thing, I saw you in a park, then we started walking and talking," he told her.

"Suddenly, I lifted you and started running, then we fell and saw my girl cousin. She took a picture of us while we were trying to hide, and she showed it to my mom...and I kinda forgot the rest."

"Well, that sounds fun... and scary," she replied.

"I'm not sure, but I guess my mom was telling me there's no need to worry and stuff."

"In real life, it wouldn't be like that — especially if she told your dad," she teased.

"I know, but still, it was so nice," he said.

Jasmine felt a spike of anxiety and confessed, "If I had a dream like that, I'd start crying."

"Why? You were so elated in the dream — even my mom was, except for my cousin, obviously," he laughed.

After that, he sent Jam a video of his little sister saying hi.

Jasmine suddenly felt a rush of joy lift her spirits. She asked how and what he told her.

"I'll tell her to say whatever you want to hear," he said.

"Let her be. Don't bug her," she laughed.

But the joy didn't last long. Jasmine felt a sting of worry: "What if his little sister told his parents? Isn't that too much? It's cute... but it's really too much," she overthought.

Adam's brother was studying aboard in Turkey. After leaving his family, he sank into depression — he couldn't stand anything anymore. He wanted desperately to come back home, but his parents wouldn't agree; they had paid so much to send him there.

But for what? His mental health had collapsed. He couldn't study, couldn't go out, couldn't even speak a word of Turkish.

"If I stay any longer, it'll just be a waste of time," his brother told him.

He was failing all his classes, and the family had grown tired of their "failing sons."

Adam's brother was the eldest. Ever since he was nine, he'd suffered from racism. He didn't even have a single friend until ninth grade.

By the way, Dam was freaking out about his grades — he knew he'd messed up and hadn't studied well. Jasmine tried to stay positive, telling him everything would be alright.

Yet Dam still felt overwhelmed, and no one could really blame him.

But Jas thought being positive was pointless; she got frustrated, dismayed, and told him to just go to sleep and forget about it.

"I can't fall asleep if you're still mad at me." he told her.

"Stop acting like I matter or whatever. I'm not mad — I'm worried," she replied.

"I didn't want you to be worried because of me." Dam said after he felt shocked and hurt, thinking: "Why does she keep believing I don't care about her at all?" Then he went to sleep.

Time went by.

"Jas, you're leaving in three days. I'll get depression," Dam said jokingly.

"You'll be just fine. It's not like there's any difference," she replied, matching his energy.

"Stay a bit longer. Trust me—it really does make a huge difference for me," he said.

Jas thought he was just teasing and said, "Just imagine I lied and said I'm staying — wouldn't make any difference."

But Adam answered more seriously, "For you it doesn't matter, but it does for me."

Jas asked softly, "Why?"

Adam hesitated. "If I told you, you'd get upset."

"I won't, I promise," she said, expecting him to say something silly or sweet.

"Because I'm still waiting for you to change your mind so we can hang out. But if you leave, that hope is gone. I'm sorry," Adam confessed.

"I'm not mad," she said gently. "But I can't lie to you about staying for two more weeks." Jas was surprised by his answer.

"I'm sorry. It's my fault," Adam said.

"Dam, what's the point if you'd only see me for five minutes? It's no one's fault. You know if I hadn't texted you on that day, you'd probably be fine right now."

"No, I wouldn't," he replied.

"Even if your family is okay with it, mine isn't. We wouldn't be able to go out anyway," Jas added, trying to comfort him.

"I'm sorry. I was stupid for even thinking about it," he said, trying to end the topic.

"Stop. You're not stupid. It's fine. Let's just talk about something else."

Dam went silent for about thirty minutes to think, then came back and said, "Jas, I'm so sorry. You're right—it's not a big deal. And I've been acting like a child, talking about silly things in my life. I should man up and not bother you. Sorry about that too."

"Stop saying that. I don't mind it at all. You can talk about whatever you want—because that's what I want," she replied, trying to calm him down.

Dam finally felt wanted. "I love you. Thank you for being the best thing in my life. Without you, I'd still be at zero. I can't even stand to imagine what my life would be like if you weren't here right now."

Jas felt happy, but also a little nervous again. "I love you even more. And you'll be fine without me, so stop saying that," she said softly.

Then she added, "What's Layla doing?".

"Believe me, I won't be fine. My brother's FaceTiming my parents right now, and I'm helping Layla get to sleep," he replied.

"Just imagine I was some kind of prank your friends pulled on you—or AI—and get over me," she teased.

"I swear I'd go into a dark place," he replied, laughing.

*Adam sent you a video.*

Jasmine received a video of Layla singing a song about her mom. At the end of the video, Adam asked Layla to say hi to Jasmine. Layla thought he meant to say hi to her mom instead, but he still sent the video to his mom too, just in case Layla mentioned anything.

Jasmine had a small wave of affectionate love, thanking him. To her, it wasn't just a video—it meant so much more. Yet at the same time, it left her thinking a bit and feeling slightly uneasy.

Adam loved seeing how happy the video made her feel, not knowing about the unease behind it. He told her she'd be receiving a daily video just for her pretty eyes—and because Layla loved filming videos too, so it was a win‑win situation.

"You give me energy and purpose in this life, Jas. If you didn't love me... who would?"

"Everyone will. And everyone does," she replied sharply.

"But Jas, since we might never meet... can we call more often?"

"I wouldn't mind calling you all day," she said, "but you know I can't always do that... still, I'll try my best."

"That's why I love you." he said

"I LOVE YOU MORE!"

9- I texted your friends, too

The next day, Jasmine told Adam that she might stay in Kuwait for a couple more days.

 Adam: "That's the best news I've heard all year!"

Jasmine asked randomly: "How did you change this much? You sound like a totally different person since the first day we texted,"

 Adam: "You changed me. I usually need time to get used to people, but you helped me express my feelings more. I love you so much, I can't help it."

Jasmine: "But I don't want you to stop being like this, even if we didn't work out." Adam: "I can't promise you that. It's almost impossible."

 Jasmine: "What if you married someone else?"

 Adam: "Marriage is different... but honestly, I don't think I'll be able to."

Jasmine: "Another relationship then?"

Adam: "No. You're the first and last girl I'll ever talk to before marriage."

Jasmine: "Eventually you'll have to forget about everything."

Adam: "Do I? Will you? I won't be mad if you did... but I won't."

Jasmine: "I won't either. But I can't be blamed if one day you don't show enough affection to other women."

Adam: "There is no other woman. If it's not you, why would I even talk to her?"

Jasmine: "What if she loved you more than I ever did?"

 Adam: "But I won't love her."

 Jasmine: "Why won't you give other chances? What if I liked someone else?"

 Adam: "I don't want to give other chances. What's the point if it's not you?" then he added: "I don't know... do whatever you want, I'm not holding you back. But... is there someone else?"

Adam started worrying, overthinking what she meant.

 Jasmine panicked. "There's no one else! I'm sorry I made you think that—I didn't mean it that way. I just want you to keep living your life, showing love to people you care about."

 Adam: "I'm sorry. I know you just want the best for me, but it's not possible to like anyone else after you. Marriage is different... but even then, I still want it to be you."

 Jasmine: "What if it was another clingy girl who came the way I did?"

 Adam: "I'd block her."

 Jasmine: "What if you left me after suddenly losing feelings? What's your biggest turn-off?" 

 Adam: "I won't. And nothing. Stop making me feel like you're trying to push me away. There's nothing that could turn me off about you. You can do whatever you want."

Jasmine: "Of course not! I just want to avoid it. But don't I annoy you sometimes?"

 Adam: "No."

 Jasmine: "I'm sorry... How about we move on to something else?"

 "Jasmine, if you want to break up, just say it," Adam said, sensing something was wrong.

 Jasmine: "No, no! Of course not! Shut up—don't even think about it. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought this up in the first place."

 Adam: "Can I ask you something then?"

Jasmine: "Of course you can. I've been bothering you all day."

Adam quoted her old message that said (he was perfect actually,) about her ex.

Adam didn't want to sound insecure, but he asked what she meant by that, wondering if maybe she liked him again—and that's why she'd been acting weird lately.

Jasmine: "He wasn't. I didn't know what perfect meant until I met you. Tariq was boring, narcissistic... all he did was talk about himself and try to make me jealous."

Adam felt sort of relieved and said: "Sorry for asking."

Jasmine: "Dam, you did nothing wrong. I ask worse questions all the time."

Adam: "I love your questions. You can ask whatever you want—I never mind."

"I love you. And you really don't have to handle all my questions all the time," she replied.

Adam: "I love you most. And really, I don't mind. Better than you asking someone else."

She sensed he was still doubting something. "Are you still thinking about that? I love you more than anyone. You have to know: if I didn't want this relationship, I would've blocked you without even arguing. But I want you. I want you to stay as long as you want. That's what I want. No one else is taking your place—because no one can."

"I'm sorry. I'll try to stop overthinking it," Adam said, feeling a bit bad that he mistrusted her.

Jasmine: "Blocked,"

Adam: "Who?"

Jasmine: "Tariq. He's not worth it."

Adam: "You didn't have to... if you didn't want to."

Jasmine: "I don't want you to overthink because of me." 

Adam: "Okay... I'm sorry."

Jasmine: "Stop apologizing. I love you."

Adam: "I know. Me too."

Jasmine: "Then why are you still overthinking it?"

Adam: "I don't know... I'm trying."

Jasmine: "I love you more than anything. What's making you overthink?"

"Because you said it, without me even asking..." (quoting her message: "what if I like someone else?") "But forget about it. I'm sorry. I don't want you to feel bad." he said.

Jasmine: "I asked because I wanted to know if you'd get over me faster if I lied about it. I'm really, really sorry... I shouldn't have brought it up in the first place."

 Adam: "Even if there was anyone, never tell me. I don't want to know."

Jasmine: "There won't be, trust me. I'll never find anyone better than you."

Adam: "Then why do you think I would find someone better? You're the prettiest and best girl I've ever talked to. No one's ever cared about me the way you do. I adore you, Jas."

Jasmine: "I love you too."

Adam: "but don't talk about it again please"

Jasmine: "I'm sorry again"

A day later, Jas told Adam she was sorry, but she was leaving Kuwait the day after tomorrow. She explained she'd tried her best to convince her family to let her stay longer, but they refused. She kept apologizing, trying not to make Adam upset.

He told her it was totally fine and that it wasn't her fault—but deep down, he felt a little despair. Jas kept trying to cheer him up, telling him everything would still be the same.

"I know you care, Jas... but you still could've lied to me about it, just to make me feel better at least," Adam texted.

Jas was dumbfounded. "You want me to care about you by lying to you? That's your definition of love? So what now—you've been lying to me this whole time, just to seem like you care?"

Adam's brain shut down. He hadn't expected that reaction. He quickly deleted his text and started throwing out "sorrys", hoping she wouldn't think any further.

"Please, Jasmine... stop saying crazy things like that."

"Adam, can we not talk tonight?" she asked.

"Jasmine, please... you know what I meant."

"I actually don't," she replied, furious.

"I just meant... you could've chosen not to tell me, especially since you know how I feel about it. I didn't want you to lie," Adam rushed to say, adding, "You really don't think I'd lie to you all this time, right? I'd rather die than have you believe that. You know me, Jas. I'd never lie about something like this."

"And you genuinely believe that if I lied, it would be better? Eventually, you'd ask about it. You expect me to lie to make you feel better? I think you should really go to sleep tonight," she snapped back.

"I didn't think of it that way... and of course I don't want you to lie to me. Please, I won't sleep if you're still mad at me. I'm so sorry," he pleaded.

Jas asked him to go to bed after feeling she might have overreacted a bit. She closed her phone and pondered for nearly an hour—wondering if this relationship was worth it, if she deserved the love, or if he deserved the way she treated him. She thought about next year, her senior year, her dreams... she deliberated over everything.

But when she finally unlocked her phone, it almost blew up from all the messages he'd sent.

"I'm sorry." over fifteen times.

"I'm stupid."

"Please, Jam."

"Don't leave."

"Let's not end the night like this."

"Idk if you're seeing these messages, but I want you to know you're the most beautiful, clever girl I'll ever talk to, and I'm not exaggerating, not even a bit."

"Idk how you even thought I might have lied to you about everything after all you've helped me with."

"I love you. I'd never lie to you. And If I'm being attentive to you., know that I really, really do."

"I didn't want you to lie to me... I just wanted more time to accept the idea."

"Jas, I love you."

"I know you're not asleep."

"I swear I love you."

"Don't leave me hanging like this."

"I'll still text you even if you're not here yet."

"What are you doing tomorrow??"

"Yeah... did you eat anything today?"

"I'll be back in a minute. I want you to be awake when I'm back."

"Byee... love ya."

That was all — just Adam, desperate for Jasmine to reply. That's how far his madness could go for her.

Jasmine was thunderstruck—shaken to the core, staggered by how devastated he sounded.

Yet deep inside, she couldn't bear it anymore. It was too much love for someone who felt so unworthy.

"Adam, I don't think this relationship would be the best for us. I don't want us to get our feelings hurt over something temporary. We both know if we stay on this track, it will never really work out—especially since it hasn't lasted that long yet. You shouldn't be thinking about marriage right now. We're still young. And you're getting too attached to me—a girl you've never even seen in real life. You're not taking care of yourself, your social life, or even our families' trust. And you know deep down you wouldn't accept this for Layla either. Anyway, I'll be giving my phone to my family next year because I need to fully focus on my senior year, and I've barely regained my brothers' trust. Eventually, if we're truly meant for each other, it will happen—now or later. But right now, I want you to take care of yourself, your family, your friends... and please, don't reply immediately. Read this message with your heart, and take your time to truly think about what I'm saying. I wish you the best, and I don't want this relationship to affect your future self. And if you really love me, I'm asking you: don't let it ruin any of your dreams or future relationships."

That's what Jasmine said. She meant every word; she'd put it all out there.

Adam read it. Deep down, he had always felt she might do it — but he kept convincing himself she wouldn't.

He couldn't. His heart was racing, pounding so loud it drowned everything else. Not this fast. Not like this. He didn't expect it to come this soon.

Adam: "Jas, no... Jas, please, just hear me out. I can't, Jas... I always told you I can't. Why didn't you believe me? Jas, I need you. At least as friends. I know I lied about silly things sometimes, I'm sorry... but please... Jasmine, I'm not ready. Not like this... not all at once. Jas, answer me, please... at least let's take it slowly, that's all I'm asking for."

Jasmine: "Adam, I really can't,"

Adam: "Jasmine, please... just one more week. Or... or we could talk once a week, My heart is about to stop." he begged.

"Adam, you're lying to yourself," she answered softly.

Adam: "No, no, I promise... once a month, even. Not all at once, I won't be able to handle it."

"You're asking for more time because you think I'll change my mind... but it's not possible," she told him gently. "I've been thinking about this for a while now. I just didn't know when was the right time."

Adam: "It's all my fault... I always destroy everything, I always ruin things for you. I'm sorry... just a week, please. I don't want you to change your mind, I just need more time to process all this." "Stop saying you ruin everything. You don't," she insisted. "I can't jump into it all at once... just one more week, please," he pleaded again.

Jasmine: "You can do it on your own,".

"I can't... please, Jas..."

"Sorry, I can't," she said.

And that's when Jasmine blocked Adam — her everything for the last three months. That night was harsh on both of them.

Jas could barely sleep; she kept replaying every word he'd said.

She told her best friend about it, and her friend assured her she'd done the right thing — that it could've been so much worse.

But Jas wasn't fully convinced.

On the other hand, Adam couldn't sleep at all. His heart still couldn't absorb what had happened; it kept pounding in his chest. His eyes refused to blink, held wide open by restless thoughts. "Why?" "What did I do wrong?" "Did she actually liked someone else?" He pondered these questions deeply. Panic and overwhelm took hold of him.

The next day, Jasmine was trying to return to her routine from before she met Adam. Something felt wrong, though. She even asked her friend if that feeling meant anything.

"No, you're just breaking the routine you got used to, Jas. You'll be fine," her friend said.

But Jas couldn't agree. She couldn't help it—she texted Adam.

Adam didn't know how to feel anymore. He was numb, confused. He still loved her... but was it worth it anymore? "I'm not texting her," he thought. "She doesn't want me anymore."

Jas told him she'd give him one more week. But what made Jas feel something was off was when he replied:

"No, if you don't want to, it's fine."

She had only wanted him to forgive her; she wanted nothing else. That's what she said.

"Why did you block me? I just want you to forgive me," he wrote back.

"Forgive him for what?" she thought. Jasmine read his words and felt nothing. They sounded empty to her—soulless. She didn't feel what she used to feel when he said things like that.

She asked him to forget everything that had happened between them.

"I want you to forgive me, Jas. I'll never stop loving you, no matter what you do. I'll try to get over you, but you didn't have to block me," he replied.

She asked him to stop saying he loved her, reminding him that everything she did was for his own good.

"I'm sorry. I promise I'll try to get back on track. But promise me you'll never block me. I want to make sure you'll be fine," he pleaded.

Still, she felt nothing.

"I will be fine, Adam. Can you worry about yourself instead? Think about yourself. If I stay, you'll keep overthinking. I don't want that to happen," she wrote.

Adam: "I'll think about myself if I know you'll be okay, I promise I will. But if you block me, I'll keep thinking about you. I want you to be a good memory, Jas. I want to remember you without guilt."

Jasmine: "I'm doing fine, Adam. All I need you to do is forget about me. I'm the one who carries the guilt."

Adam: "I will never forget you. I can't control what I remember and what I don't. Let's at least make it a fond memory."

Jasmine: "How can I make Adam forget Jasmine? And I want a genuine answer,"

Adam: "What you're asking is impossible, Jas. That would take at least two years—if it even happened,"

Jasmine: "Adam, I'm throwing my phone away. My senior year starts on the 18th of August."

Adam: "Jas, please. Let's get back to normal until then. My grades will be out on the 13th."

Jasmine: "Fine. One week. I'll be there for you. But then... I'm gone.

Adam: "Can I ask what's going on in your head right now? I feel foolish. You seem like you don't even care, or maybe you already got used to the idea because you've been thinking about it for a while. I feel lost and don't know what to do,"

Jasmine: "I don't hate you. I'm just worried about you and your future,"

Adam: "You've been the best part of my life lately. Jas, you don't get it. No one ever gave me that much attention. I have friends and know a lot of people... but I was lonely. You filled a gap, You helped me through so many phases. Who am I going to share every detail with now? Talking to you solved all my problems, distracted me from all the negativity."

Jasmine: "Adam, you did that yourself. I was just watching. I was actually the reason you had problems in the first place,"

Adam: "I was all my problems,"

"Just think of me as Karim, your friend who catfished you. Adam, I'm not Jasmine," she said, trying to help him forget about her.

"No one keeps me company like you do. You're matchless, Jas. I want you to be there, to share every detail of my life with me," he replied. "Jas, every time I see a cat in the street, I remember you. Let's just keep it that way—no hard feelings."

Jas: "When you said your heart was about to stop... did you really mean it?"

Adam: "Well, when I saw your text, it really did beat so fast. I did exaggerate a bit though."

Jasmine: "Well, don't... if there's ever a next time." Adam: "It's my bad, I get attached too easily." 

Each of them kept blaming themselves, each convinced they'd ruined everything. Jasmine kept asking him to stop. "You literally did nothing wrong," she told him.

"is it something I did?" he replied.

"You did nothing wrong. But there will be millions of Jasmines who'll treat you better."

"But there's just one in my heart," Adam said. "How can I find someone like her?"

"You will," she insisted. "The world is full... and you'll find a better Jasmine."

Jasmine started going on and on, telling him he should be his own first priority — that she shouldn't matter this much to him.

"I wanted to do so much with you," he confessed. "You were my motive to study, to work, to do anything. You're not just some 'girl' who happened to enter my life. And I know what you mean, but talking about it is easier than living it. And I'm sorry if I'm pissing you off... I should've respected your choice and kept my mouth shut."

Jasmine: "All our relationship was about me getting mad over something silly, and you always trying to fix it. That's not what I wish for you. You deserve better.

"Adam: "I love making things right with you. I love every moment you were with me — that's what I want, what I wish for, nothing more. I don't deserve more. If it's not you, it's no one. But... why did you choose this timing to do this?"

Jasmine: "Your brother is coming tomorrow. I thought that might help."

Adam: "I don't want everything to be gone, Jas. I can't. I'm so thankful you even gave me this week. If you hadn't agreed, I might've fallen apart into depression. You mean so much to me."

Jasmine: "You know depression is a big deal, right? You said a week would be enough."

Adam: "I hope."

Jas had a meltdown. "What do you mean 'you hope'? You said it would be enough. You said you'd be fine!"

Adam: "I don't know, nothing is certain. Right now, even a month might not help. But I'll figure it out after this week ends."

Jasmine: "It should be enough. I'm not something necessary — not water, not oxygen."

Adam: "Jas, eventually I'll have to move on... it's just about how much time it will take me to feel normal."

Jasmine: "A week."

Adam: "You really don't care?" He sensed the coldness in her words.

Jasmine: "Adam, I promised my mom. This week should be enough. You said it."

Adam: "Listen, I don't want to annoy you. A week should calm me down. But if I still feel this way... Jas, thinking about someone while training — that's something that never happened to me before. But it did with you,"

Jasmine: "I'm sorry, wholeheartedly."

Adam prayed every night that they would end up together — and if they couldn't, he just hoped it wouldn't haunt him for too long.

Adam: "It's more challenging for me, you know? You have your people to talk to about it. I have no one. I'll carry it all on my own. You're the only person I talk to about this."

Jasmine: "What about Bibi?"

Adam said sarcastically: "What about her? Trust me, she's not the one I need right now."

Jasmine: "But what if she was more suitable for you than me?"

Adam: "Even if I had a million Bibis right now, it wouldn't be 1% of Jasmine."

Jasmine said gently: "Why is that?"

Adam: "Because I know her... and I know you. Honestly, I despise her now. Plus, I told you — I won't talk to any girl but you. I'm no liar."

Jasmine: "But you need someone — and you said you could handle it. And after the 13th, there will be no Jasmine in Adam, and no Adam in Jasmine. Adam will be free, for himself, and will keep improving."

Adam: "Jasmine is always in Adam. I don't know how you want me to forget all that. I swear, even if I had Alzheimer's, I wouldn't forget this."

Jasmine said playfully: "What if Karim offered you to marry his sister?"

Adam laughed and said: "He doesn't have a sister... he has a dog, though."

Jasmine: "So marry the dog?"

Adam: "Everything reminds me of you, Jam. Even that dog now... the gym, Layla, my phone."

Jasmine: "Sooo... should I delete myself?"

Adam: "Of course not. That's the prettiest thing I can be reminded of. You're part of me now."

Jasmine felt the guilt wash over her again. "I regret everything... every word, every letter, every text."

Adam: "Don't. I'm sorry. You're the only person who truthfully... not just listens to me, but hears me. No one ever made me feel worth anything."

Jasmine kept going, trying to convince him of his worth, but then Adam asked:

"Okay, but think of this: I focus on myself, you focus on yourself... but in 10 years, how would I know if you got married?"

Jasmine: "You won't care."

Adam: "Like, if I did, when are you planning to get married? Or if I was searching for the girl, could I come to you? Would you say yes?"

Jasmine: "Okay, stop."

 Adam: "I will never forget you... until I marry you."

Jasmine: "You won't find me anyway, Adam. I'm not real."

Adam: "But we both want to... it's just a thought, I'm not saying it should happen."

Jasmine: "You'll forget about this and marry someone better. It won't happen, Adam — that's reality."

Adam: "Well, I'd rather keep dreaming. I can't imagine myself with anyone else but you."

Jasmine: "I'm just helping you face the truth."

Adam: "Yeah... but my imagination is better. That's all I can do." Then, almost without thinking, he added, "How can I let you go for someone else? He'd be the luckiest man alive."

Jasmine started suggesting hobbies or ways to fill his time so he wouldn't think of her. started helping him plan his career path.

Adam: "Why do you care?"

Jasmine: "I don't. Do whatever you want." That message was tough to read for Adam.

Then she added, "What about, you think about how you could make your brother's day better."

Adam: "I can't. I can't even make my own day better."

Jasmine: "Okay, I'm sorry. But both of you feeling down won't help anything. Plus, your brother has a pretty convincing reason to feel down."

Adam: "And now what? Kms? How would they even know what I'm feeling is killing me inside? You were my routine, Jas. You gave me worth."

Jasmine: "Whoever is telling you this, or making you feel like this, couldn't be more deluded. Stop saying things like that."

Adam: "You know... I actually wanted to change schools because of my friends, not because of the trouble. Even Karim — I really love him, but he's started hanging around people who do weed and drink. He's changing, I tried to help him out, but he's denying."

He said that, after getting into a fight with his friends because he was too Irritated he didn't take a joke.

His brother came back home, and Jasmine traveled back to Saudi Arabia. She asked Adam not to pile more pressure on his brother, and instead to try to lift his mood a little.

"Yes, madam, I'll get him whatever he wants, and we'll hang out and have so much fun. — what else?" Adam replied.

"Thank you," she said.

Adam started rereading their old messages; they made him feel better. A lot of things helped cheer him up, but when Jasmine found out, she began deleting some of those messages, thinking it might help him move on from her.

By the following day,

"You know... even if I married someone else, I wouldn't be as happy as I would if it were with you," he said.

Jasmine exploded. She read that message and panicked — she'd ruined so many people's lives now; it was all getting worse. "No, no, no... it's not her fault," she said. "She just wanted to be loved by a nice man who's truly over his exes. Imagine if you named your daughter Jasmine! How terrible... how awful would that be for her, for everyone... for me?"

"It's fine, Jas," Adam replied. "My mom's name is Jasmine too — after you... and after her."

Jasmine shattered into pieces. She fell silent.

"I'm sorry, Jas. Don't feel horrible, please. It's my fault — I shouldn't be talking about this, especially right now. You're right... I can't tie my whole future and marriage to you. We're too young anyway. I'm sorry," he said, feeling guilty for making her think she had ruined everything.

"Adam, I don't think this is actually helping you or not. You seem tired — go to sleep," she told him gently.

"I seem like I love you," he replied.

She didn't respond to that message. She couldn't; it wasn't who she was.

The week ended. Jasmine actually got more attached during that week. She kept texting him, sending him pet videos, and he didn't mind — he did the same, too.

But then she told him she'd give him two more weeks, hoping they'd help him let go, not make things worse.

Yet they kept talking like normal.

Both of them suffered from insomnia,

but for different reasons:

All he wanted was her;

All she wanted was to figure out how to make him hate her.

The next couple of days, she kept trying to create problems out of nothing — trying to make him hate her.

"The first time I texted you, trying to talk, I actually texted a lot of your friends too.

You're the only one who replied.

I expected you not to fall for me — I'd heard about your reputation: 'man of God, girls are a waste of time,' blah blah blah — but what shocked me was how fast you actually did.

You were so fragile. And when I first saw you in school, I felt you were perfect for this... well, not that perfect though.

I didn't think it would go this far. Two years ago, I made this account. Never imagined I'd end up trolling a guy whose mom had the same name I used.

The day I sent you the breakup message, I really thought it was the end. But you scared the hell out of me. I couldn't handle it — I was in the shower, and you came to my mind.

What if you really waited all these years for me? And you'd never find me?

And when I tried to distance myself, I found you torn apart and miserable.

But when I drowned you in affection, I found you clinging, hopelessly lovesick.

When I came back, it felt weird. I didn't want to show you that I never really liked you — but I also never hated you. I was scared it would destroy you. I believed you were too soft for this world. I wanted to show you how harsh this world can be — even though you acted like you already knew — yet you still fell so hard for an online relationship.

And when you told me I was the only girl you dated, I knew it was a lie.

I already knew about Bibi, and that you were together for a whole year — longer than we've been together.

I asked myself: What else did he lie about? So I kept going, lying more and more.

I never expected, over these last months, that I'd actually tell you the truth. I even asked my friends if I should do it.

They all shut it down instantly.

But that night, my friend Lucy said, "Yeah, why not? What's the worst that could happen?"

I'd had enough. So here I am, after all this fear of destroying your future, telling you the truth: Jasmine isn't real (I didn't lie about that part). But yes, I used my friend's pictures — just for the looks. Even my "ex" was self-made. Every detail I showed you to prove I was real... wasn't.

That's Jade, by the way. Jade Smith — obviously.

And this time, I'm not lying."